The Clay's the Thing

terra-cotta cookery provides a temptingly aromatic variation on the main-course theme

Call it Clay-Baked Chicken, terra-cotta chicken or crocked chicken, but this bird by any name is sure to provide its maker with rich rewards. Even the most blasé autocrat of the dining table should be caught up by the flavor fidelity not only of chicken but of meat and fish cooked in the new form-fitting ceramicware.

The modern generation of down-to-earth ovenware has been brought forth by a simple but ingenious job of face lifting--which bears out the proposition that one of the oldest ways of cooking is still one of the best. In design, the latest clay pots take their cue from outdoorsmen, who, for generations, have known that the best possible way to cook game in the field is to wrap a cloak of wet clay around the bird or beast, bake it in a smoldering fire, knock the clay off and then enjoy a most succulent dish. With this principle in mind, the new ceramic pots are carefully sculptured to fit the food and molded in such a way that heat is slowly conducted to all sides of the viand simultaneously. In effect, the ceramic pot becomes an oven within an oven. All juices that normally flow off into an open roasting pan and then are lost as vapors are, instead, imprisoned within the thick clay walls. The meat or bird that's cooked will be lightly rather than deeply browned; but instead of a few tablespoons of drippings, you'll find a full cup of juice. It's a clean-tasting, superb essence that at one time in France was served as the only sauce with meat baked in an earthenware casserole. Today, it's made into a sauce that would have won kudos from Escoffier.

What would seem at first to be some obvious disadvantages of clay pots are really cardinal culinary virtues. For instance, clay pots filled with food can't be rushed from freezer to oven the way porcelainized cast-iron casseroles can. But the new clay kitchenware is intended for raw food, rather than the cooked food that usually goes into a metal casserole. And a thick clay pot should never be the receptacle for raw frozen food; in the case of fish, this is a limitation devoutly to be wished. Clay is breakable, but this also means that it's porous--a quality in cookware that French chefs for centuries have insisted is necessary for the delicate perfection of oven-baked dishes. Clay-pot cookery is a slow process; a chicken that might be ready in an hour in an open pan may take two hours in a covered terra-cotta chicken pot. But this leisurely pace permits relaxed cocktailing without the common worry of the meat drying out or becoming tough; as time goes by, the meat in a clay pot can only become more tender. Since there are no large handles on a clay baking pot, it should be lifted carefully and removed from the oven with some protection for the hands. It may be awkward to carry, but when it's placed on the table, the pot roguishly proclaims its delicious cargo: The proud head of a fowl usually adorns a pot designed for chicken, pheasant or guinea hen; a defiant fish's head and tail are built into the long clay pot designed for striped bass, salmon and other finny feasts. You can always count on the ceramic cooker, with its decorated lid, playing to the gallery at the dining table, providing the kind of showmanship that is both intimate and impressive.

There are two main types of ceramic ovenware, each marked by its own complexion. The older, more primitive-looking and less expensive has a dull, sandy beige-to-orange color, and its surface is unglazed inside and out. The most orthodox of the clay devotees will use nothing else. When in use, the inside should be lined with cooking parchment, to keep the food from sticking. After the pot is used, it should be cleaned vigorously with scalding water and a very stiff brush, preferably with wire bristles; no soap ever demeans its patina. Keep the lid off the pot when it's resting on the larder shelf. If you use an unglazed pot for fish and you hold the pot dear, you'll use it only for fish and not for fowl or meat. If the unglazed pot is designed for chicken, however, you may also use it for meat without the danger of any flavor mix-up during the baking.

The second type of clay pot is glazed on the inside and sometimes also on the outside. Glazing provides a shiny, non-porous surface; in practical terms, it means the pot is very easy to clean and that it will not retain odors, as an unglazed pot sometimes will. In time, a clay pot that is unglazed on the outside will become dark with use. An occasional chip or surface crack may appear. These signs of maturity usually mean that the pot, having passed through the fiery furnace of experience, is actually stronger than when it was new. Two or three pieces of clay ovenware are immensely useful acquisitions for any bachelor chef dedicated to the art of feeding his friends well.

Although meat baked in a clay pot will be first-rate even when cooked without salt and pepper, imaginative chefs marinate or spice the meat beforehand, remembering to use a light hand when piquant spices such as ginger or rosemary are used with veal or other subtle meats. The light natural gravy in the clay pot should be cleared of its fat before it's served. A simple technique is to pour the juice into a gravy boat with two lips, designed to pour off lean and fat gravy separately. Another method is to pour the gravy into a small container filled with ice cubes; the fat will congeal at once. Fat and ice should then be quickly removed to keep the ice from diluting the gravy. The gravy may then be seasoned, reheated and served as natural jus or it may be converted into a more sophisticated sauce.

A clay crock decorated with a molded head of a fowl or a fish needs little else by way of table decor. Place it on a simple platter and it will be its own showpiece. A plain earthenware pot, however, should be placed on an attractive trivet of brass or silver.

Henri IV, who in 1589 vowed that every French peasant would have a chicken in his pot on Sunday, and Herbert Hoover, who centuries later also promised a chicken in every pot, were men of limited vision. Pots, particularly of clay, can and should be used not only for chicken but for a mouth-watering variety of dishes--as the following recipes demonstrate.

[recipe_title]Baked Striped Bass, Shrimp Stuffing[/recipe_title]

(Serves six)

[recipe]4-1/2-lb. striped bass[/recipe]

[recipe]Salt, celery salt, pepper[/recipe]

[recipe]1-1/2 cups white bread crumbs[/recipe]

[recipe]3/4 cup milk[/recipe]

[recipe]1/2 lb. cooked shrimps, peeled and deveined (1 lb. raw shrimps in shell)[/recipe]

[recipe]1/4 cup very finely minced onion[/recipe]

[recipe]2 eggs, beaten[/recipe]

[recipe]24 small silver onions[/recipe]

[recipe]Salad oil[/recipe]

[recipe]24 fresh button mushrooms[/recipe]

[recipe]6 medium-size potatoes, peeled[/recipe]

Have fish cleaned, with head, tail and backbone removed. Preheat oven at 425° Sprinkle fish inside and out with salt, celery salt and pepper. To prepare white bread crumbs, cut off crust of two- or three-day-old French bread, cut into large dice and turn a small batch at a time into blender at high speed. Place crumbs in mixing bowl; add milk, stir well and gently squeeze to remove excess liquid. Put shrimps through meat grinder, using fine blade. Combine bread crumbs, shrimps, minced onion and eggs, mixing well. Season generously with salt, celery salt and pepper. Stuff fish with breadcrumb mixture. Peel silver onions. Heat 2 tablespoons oil in skillet and sauté onions (keeping pan covered, to avoid sputtering oil) until brown. Wash mushrooms and sauté briefly, adding more oil if necessary. Place fish in clay pot. Surround fish with onions and mushrooms; add potatoes if there is room: if not, boil them separately to be served with fish. Bake 1-1/4 hours.

[recipe_title]Baked Veal Nicoise[/recipe_title]

(Serves six)

[recipe]3 lbs. (boned weight) boneless veal roast, rump or loin[/recipe]

[recipe]1 large onion, sliced[/recipe]

[recipe]1 large carrot, sliced[/recipe]

[recipe]1/2 teaspoon dried basil[/recipe]

[recipe]1/4 teaspoon cracked bay leaf[/recipe]

[recipe]3 tablespoons salad oil[/recipe]

[recipe]Salt, pepper[/recipe]

[recipe]3 medium-size tomatoes[/recipe]

[recipe]2 tablespoons butter[/recipe]

[recipe]1/2 teaspoon very finely minced garlic[/recipe]

[recipe]1/4 cup dry vermouth[/recipe]

[recipe]2 whole canned pimientos, finely minced[/recipe]

[recipe]2 tablespoons finely minced pimiento-stuffed olives[/recipe]

Have butcher tie veal as for roasting. Place veal in bowl or shallow pan. Add onion, carrot, basil, bay leaf and oil; sprinkle generously with salt and pepper. Toss ingredients to coat veal thoroughly. Cover bowl with clear plastic wrap and marinate overnight. Preheat oven at 375°. Place veal, with marinating vegetables, in clay pot. Cover and bake 2-1/2 hours or until veal is very tender. While veal is cooking, prepare tomatoes for sauce: Lower them into pot of rapidly boiling (concluded on page 234)The Clay's the Thing(continued from page 132) water for 1/2 minute. Hold them under cold running water and remove skin and stem ends. Cut tomatoes into quarters and press to remove all seeds; chop them coarsely. Melt butter in saucepan. Add garlic and sauté 1 minute. Add tomatoes, vermouth and pimientos and simmer until tomatoes are very tender. Drain liquid from pot, skim fat and pour liquid and tomato mixture into blender. Blend until smooth and return to saucepan. Add olives and salt and pepper to taste. Simmer until hot. Carve veal; pass sauce separately at table.

[recipe_title]Baked Chicken, Wild-Rice Stuffing[/recipe_title]

(Serves four)

[recipe]3-1/4-lb. roasting chicken[/recipe]

[recipe]1 medium-size onion, finely minced Butter[/recipe]

[recipe]1 large Delicious apple[/recipe]

[recipe]14-oz. can wild rice, drained[/recipe]

[recipe]1 egg, beaten[/recipe]

[recipe]1/8 teaspoon thyme[/recipe]

[recipe]1 tablespoon finely minced parsley[/recipe]

[recipe]Salt, pepper[/recipe]

[recipe]6 medium-size mushrooms, thinly sliced[/recipe]

[recipe]1 tablespoon flour[/recipe]

[recipe]1/4 cup heavy cream[/recipe]

[recipe]1 tablespoon cognac[/recipe]

[recipe]1/2 teaspoon lemon juice[/recipe]

Preheat oven at 400°. Sauté onion in 2 tablespoons butter until yellow; set aside. Peel and core apple; shred through large holes of grater. In mixing bowl, combine onion, apple, rice, egg, thyme and parsley. Season with salt and pepper. Stuff chicken with rice mixture; fasten vent with toothpicks or small skewers. Brush chicken with 2 tablespoons melted butter; sprinkle with salt and pepper. Place in ceramic pot, cover and bake 2 to 2-1/4 hours. Pour off liquid from pot into container and skim fat from liquid. Keep chicken warm. In small saucepan, melt 1 tablespoon butter and sauté mushrooms until tender. Stir in flour. Slowly stir in reserved liquid and cream. Bring to a boil, stirring frequently; then simmer 5 minutes. Add cognac, lemon juice and salt and pepper to taste. Carve chicken; pass sauce separately at table.

[recipe_title]Baked Pork Loin, Ginger Sauce[/recipe_title]

(Serves six)

[recipe]3 lbs. (boned weight) boneless pork loin[/recipe]

[recipe]1/4 cup salad oil[/recipe]

[recipe]Salt, pepper[/recipe]

[recipe]1/4 teaspoon thyme[/recipe]

[recipe]1/4 teaspoon rosemary[/recipe]

[recipe]2 tablespoons lemon juice[/recipe]

[recipe]1 cup sliced onion[/recipe]

[recipe]1 cup sliced celery[/recipe]

[recipe]1 teaspoon very finely minced fresh ginger[/recipe]

[recipe]1/2 cup light cream[/recipe]

[recipe]2 tablespoons butter at room temperature[/recipe]

[recipe]2 tablespoons flour[/recipe]

[recipe]2 tablespoons green ginger wine[/recipe]

Have butcher tie pork as for roasting. Place pork in bowl or shallow pan. Pour oil over meat; sprinkle with salt and pepper. Rub thyme and rosemary into meat; add lemon juice, onion and celery. Toss ingredients. Cover bowl with clear plastic wrap and marinate overnight. Preheat oven at 375°. Place pork, with marinating vegetables, in clay pot, discarding the liquid. Cover and bake 2-1/2 to 3 hours or until pork is very tender. Pour off liquid from pot into container and skim fat from liquid. Keep pork warm. Pour liquid into saucepan; add minced ginger and cream. Bring to a boil. Mix butter and flour to a smooth paste, add to liquid and stir until sauce is thickened. Simmer 5 minutes. Stir in ginger wine. Season with salt and pepper to taste. Carve pork; pass sauce separately at table.

[recipe_title]Ragout Of Lamb[/recipe_title]

(Serves four)

[recipe]Half leg of lamb, about 3 lbs. with bone[/recipe]

[recipe]Salt, pepper[/recipe]

[recipe]1 tablespoon finely minced parsley[/recipe]

[recipe]1/2 teaspoon dried summer savory[/recipe]

[recipe]1 quart sliced potatoes[/recipe]

[recipe]1 cup sliced leeks[/recipe]

[recipe]2 tablespoons butter[/recipe]

[recipe]1/3 cup finely minced onion[/recipe]

[recipe]1 teaspoon very finely minced garlic[/recipe]

[recipe]2 small bay leaves[/recipe]

Have butcher bone lamb, removing outer skin and fat, and cut into chunks is for shish kabob or stew. Preheat oven at 375°. Sprinkle meat with salt, pepper, parsley and savory. Peel medium-size potatoes and cut lengthwise into quarters, then crosswise into 1/4-in.-thick slices. Cut leeks (white part only) lengthwise into quarters, then crosswise into thinnest possible slices. Melt butter in saucepan over low flame. Sauté leeks, onion and garlic just until onion is limp. Combine onion mixture with potatoes. Spread half the potatoes in the bottom of a clay pot. Add half the lamb in another layer. Add 1 bay leaf. Add balance of potatoes, balance of lamb and remaining bay leaf. Cover pot and bake 2 hours or until meat is very tender.

Your clay-pot cookery should put you in the impresario class when it comes to dramatic dining presentations. Be prepared for bravos.